Researchers recently conducted a county-level analysis of data for diabetes in the U.S., finding that there are significant differences in prevalence throughout the nation.
The results of the analysis show that there is a three-fold difference in prevalence between counties that have the lowest and highest rates. For total diabetes prevalence of both diagnosed and undiagnosed, the lowest percentage of 8.8 percent was found in Los Alamos County, New Mexico, and the highest of 26.4 percent in Starr County, Texas.
The analysis also shows major differences between diabetes awareness, diagnosis and effective treatment rates. This information will help health care providers as well as policymakers detect regions that need more public health resources than others.
"These results, detailing county-by-county trends, can play an important role in providing health care leaders and policymakers with a blueprint for communities demonstrating the greatest need for more effective diabetes prevention and treatment strategies," Laura Dwyer-Lindgren, the paper's lead author and researcher with the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in Seattle, said. "We hope our findings will be used to target high-burden areas and to help select the right mix of public health strategies for each community. This data empowers leaders at the local and national level to make dramatic improvements in public health."
